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Bentley University has announced a strategic partnership between its Center for Marketing Technology (CMT) and Cambridge Focus (CF), one of the most respected focus group research firms in the U.S. Through the partnership, CF will transfer its focus group business to the CMT, a state-of-the-art market research facility located on the Bentley campus in Waltham.

Boston-based Cambridge Focus will promote the Center for Marketing Technology as its preferred high-tech and high-touch focus group facility. CF recruits focus group participants for corporations and market research firms with packaged focus group offerings or a la carte.

"CF clients can bring in their own moderator or hire Bentley CMT professionals to create a discussion guide, moderate the sessions, write a report and provide strategic recommendations," says Bentley CMT Director Ian Cross. "We have a very flexible arrangement to suit the market research needs of corporations and non-profits, big and small clients, business services and consumer product groups."

Cambridge Focus has an extensive client list and strong relationships with research partners and market research business associations. CF expands the CMT's consumer research reach with large clients such as General Mills, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Brookings Institute. It also adds dimension to Bentley's own research projects and existing CMT partnerships with Microsoft, Hewlett Packard and innovative start-up companies.

"Bentley students working in the CMT benefit from this exposure to compelling research projects; they expand their understanding of client expectations, learn how to manage a professional market research facility, and are able to secure internship opportunities," Cross explains. "CF clients benefit from tapping into Bentley's world class business and academic expertise for their projects."

"This partnership offers Cambridge Focus a wonderful opportunity to extend our services to the next level of market and opinion research," says CF Managing Principal Lloyd Simon. "I think of our alliance as Cambridge Focus 2.0. We are now able to offer our clients an enhanced range of state-of-the-art services in a productive, creative environment that is inspiring to researchers and their research subjects. Through our work with Bentley University and the Center for Marketing Technology we are addressing the needs and desires of research professionals who must keep abreast of today's fast changing, multi media markets."

The Center for Marketing Technology is a state-of-the-art facility dedicated to qualitative and quantitative marketing research and analysis to deliver action-oriented consumer insights. The CMT is also dedicated to staying at the forefront of marketing technology and best practices and providing workshops and seminars on new tools and marketing concepts.

Cambridge Focus has been among the top ranked qualitative research centers in the country for the past twelve years according to the independent Impulse Survey of Focus Group Moderators and Researchers. In the most recent survey the company received the highest rating in Boston, and the second highest in the United States, in the category of participant recruiting.

Cambridge Focus is best known for providing clients with responsive, thoughtful support that allows them to focus on their goals with the assurance that the facility, participant and logistical aspects of their work have been entrusted to a professional team which shares their goals.

BENTLEY UNIVERSITY is one of the nation’s leading business schools, dedicated to preparing a new kind of business leader – one with the deep technical skills, broad global perspective, and high ethical standards required to make a difference in an ever-changing world. Our rich, diverse arts and sciences program, combined with an advanced business curriculum, prepares informed professionals who make an impact in their chosen fields. Located on a classic New England campus minutes from Boston, Bentley is a dynamic community of leaders, scholars and creative thinkers. The Graduate School emphasizes the impact of technology on business practice, in offerings that include MBA and Master of Science programs, PhD programs in accountancy and in business, and customized executive education programs. The university enrolls approximately 4,100 full-time undergraduate, 140 adult part-time undergraduate, 1,430 graduate, and 43 doctoral students. Bentley is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges; AACSB International – The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business; and the European Quality Improvement System, which benchmarks quality in management and business education. For more information, please visit www.bentley.edu.